At SEMAFOR’s “Navigating Regulatory Waves: Pathways Toward Policy Innovation” event on October 28, policymakers and industry leaders spoke on how the U.S. can adapt to new economic and technological obstacles in an era of renewed geopolitical rivalry. The common question they answered was How can the U.S. stay innovative and competitive in this fast-changing world?
Out of all the conversations that day, the one with Rep. Deborah Ross (D-NC) stood out to me—she spoke with conviction, humor, and a sense of urgency that cut through the usual talking points. Her first message: innovation shouldn’t come with a price tag.
Rep. Ross didn’t mince words about President Donald Trump’s idea to impose new fees on patents. She called it a threat to first-time inventors and minority business enterprises (MBEs)—the people who most need access, not more disadvantages.
“We need to support first-time patent holders to uphold the values this country was founded on,” she said. She emphasized that we need the freedom to let a spark of creativity grow into something bigger, to let it ignite lasting change.
Her point reached me. In my admittedly limited experience, I understand that innovation doesn’t start in boardrooms—it starts with individuals who take risks. When new inventors face higher costs, creativity stalls before ever starting.
Ross noted that a bipartisan push is already underway in the House and said she hopes the Senate will “be the grown-ups in the room again” when it reaches their floor.
When AI Meets Accountability
Ross then turned to intellectual property and AI, where creativity and regulation are colliding fast. She criticized the current administration’s “manipulation” of copyright law and said, “Copyright should know no favoritism.”
She also warned that AI is already infringing on intellectual property rights, and that Congress needs to act. “I’d love to have a bipartisan law on AI,” she joked, “but Congress can’t convene.”
It was a light moment with a heavy truth behind it. The longest government shutdown in U.S. history has stalled policymaking at a time where it is most necessary. But Ross pointed out a silver lining. While Congress stalls, states are stepping up, especially when it came to stopping AI from interfering in the recent elections.
Democracy Under Pressure
The conversation then shifted to voting rights. Ross spoke about Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, explaining that minorities now have to prove discrimination to access protections. She said this shift has left many Black voters in North Carolina institutionally disadvantaged.
Ross described the ongoing gerrymandering battles in her state as a deliberate attempt to weaken representation before the midterms. “We spend more time talking about Biden in the judiciary than we do Trump,” she added, bringing in the evident lack of accountability and oversight in the current administration. Her message was clear: when partisanship replaces fairness, democracy suffers.
Concluding Thoughts
Another speaker, Robert Zirkelbach of PhRMA, reinforced Ross’s message with a simple truth: “Every dollar we spend on a tariff is a dollar we can’t spend on R&D.”
Both reminded me that smart policy should fuel innovation, not fence it in. Whether through tariffs or patent fees, misplaced economic decisions drain the resources, energy, and mindset that drive progress.